The Move

From the cold city of Baguio I decide to move to the hot city of Santiago. We don't live in the heart of the city though. We live in the outskirt of town and when I say outskirt its really somewhere so far away. My next door neighbor is really not next door because it would take me 15 minutes walk. The grocery store is 30 minutes drive from me. Everything is expensive but the kind of country atmosphere gives me a really nice feeling. I dont really have much of a complain except the weather. It rain in the morning them it will be so hot mid day then out of a sudden the rain will come pouring again like hell. Sometimes it will make people crazy cause i cant even go out, the pathway is so muddy since our place is in the middle of rice fields.

Right now while writing this post I am in Baguio. We came here to have a check up. Its an 11 hour drive but its worth it and its even cheaper. We went to a hospital there but they gave us the wrong medication good thing is that we did not take much of the meds.

I hope this move is really a good one :)

PS: pictures to follow :)

More than the Perfect Daughter

I don't really know if its okey to say that in some ways you hate your father. It could be really harsh for me to say this but I really hate my father.

Somehow a lot of people would think that we have a perfect family but few people know the real score. A mom who left her job to work in the UK so she can provide for the family.  A dad who is so obvious who got a favorite daughter.

I was so down on my knees and asked if its possible for him to loan me money so i can start a new business, but all the answer i got was where are my savings. I was a worthless kind who dont know how to save. Yes i know for sure that somehow when i starter working when i was 17 i often go out with my friend, sometimes buy things i need, like clothes but how dare him to say i am worthless.

I do admit that i often lie but to him everything that i say is a lie. Maybe even saying that i am so sick with medical record is still a lie. If i asked for money so i could go to the doctor he would say that its no use or something like its just a waste of money.

I tried to over work myself so i can give him something extra because that's what he is after anyway and still not enough i am still worthless.

I dont know maybe I am just trying to hard to be the perfect daughter.

A Wedding Planner

I have been involve in my friends wedding plan and most of them likes it. They told me that I am so detailed and I can make a living out of it. Some of them say I would be lucky cause I wont be needing a wedding planner if i get married, I was thinking about that too.... 

But

It don't look like that way now! Yep I was recently engage to my BF of 5 years and we are planning to get married next year, It's still too early to plan but since the traditional wedding in my tribe takes 3 days then it really needs an early preparation.

When I was helping my friend plan their wedding I would start on what kind of wedding are they going to have. That is where we start to draw what kind of gown are they going to use but now that kind of rule seem to vanish. It's really different if you are planning your own wedding. I mean perfection is a must but as a future bride I guess I want more that that. It only happens once in a lifetime just like birth so it should be something so special.

anyway these days I am checking on what kind of gown I would wear, I will be having a garden wedding and I was thinking something like this:

or

there are a lot of choices really but I just decided to choose between the two so it wont be hard and it wont take a really long time deciding...

which one do you think is a good choice?

Missing Him so MUch

I was really expecting that he will come home this July but unfortunately he was asked to extend his contract for another 6 months so once again I wont be seeing him in half a year again. I really hate the fact that we are so far away but then again I understand that he needs to do what he got to do to reach his dreams.

(Pics taken before he went on board 7 months ago)

As I was listening to some music I started to remember something, It really did melt my heart when I was so stressed at work and so alone in china, those are my first two months and he called me, I know it was him because i can see the name but all I hear is a violin playing my favorite song. I cried cause I never expect someone to go that far to make me smile. There were times that he calls just to sing a song, he sings well (not because I am his GF) and I really like that.

God I really miss him, he would always tell me that time pass by so fast when you don't count them, well I really hope it does cause I cant wait to see him.

Death - Makes me Pray

I was absent to the blogging world for quite sometimes because I don't really know what to write, somehow I find a lot of things in my head but none of them made it to the final thing to write. There is one thing though that I have been thinking for the last week. It all started when I learned that my first cousin just died.

I started to realize that it is indeed true that death is the greatest equalizer, no one can avoid it. It made me think if ever I will die tomorrow am I ready? I don't really think I am, I not ready to leave my son at a very young age, have not reach nor started to achieve my dream yet.  Most of all I don't think I am spiritually ready.

Since I have been thinking of death since that time, I started to do something I haven't done in a very long time. Praying! it is true that we sometimes call our creator when we needed him, I am guilty of that. I really wanted him to watch over me and my family.

while writing this i look at my son who is sleeping so peacefully, I started to think what will happen to him when I am gone, sure there are a lot of family who can take care of him but I pray to God not to get me now, to give me a long life to see what will he become. I am still afraid of death though..

Sigh! there is something good though when I think about death, it makes me think about God and it makes me closer to him. I dont pray before but now I do... I guess it's also one way of God reminding me of him.

lets us all pray for every one :)

Grammar Matters

Somehow I started my blog not really considering the pain of editing and making every word and sentence to be in proper order.  I always want to just consider what I feel when I write an article and not about the structure of my sentence.  Since I don’t edit and blogger auto correct might not work sometimes my spelling could be wrong. BUT one blogger commented on one of my post pointing out grammar errors. 

On my defense I could say that I am writing for myself and I don’t really care if my grammar is wrong, after all English native speakers do commit them more often than expected. (And that is true to most native speaker of a certain language, after all its all about what I say and not how I say it) But I know that is a lie, I blog because I want people to read, so that excuse is not acceptable.

Lesson I learn is that if you want people to understand what you write then you have to consider your grammar, especially if you are writing in a second language like me. You don’t have to memorize all the patters and you don’t really have to know all the 21 tenses of verbs but maybe there are things that you need to consider.

To be honest I did write this post 6 diff times but most of the time I don’t feel it, I feel like it was too geeky, or to romantic so I am still writing it the way I use to do but with more consideration on my grammar.  (or so I thought).

There is one thing that I would wish though, I hope people won’t point out in the comment box how grammatically wrong you are, it would be okey if they message the person, because the others who will read the blog will need to find more and soon enough people would be talking about every grammar error you made and not the blog at all. Don’t make it sound like not knowing what is the difference of has been and has, or began and begun is bigger than alien attack on planet earth..

and please consider this one golden rule:

once again I do appreciate the correction it's something I should really learn, it's just that some people are doing it in a really negative way. (sorry for ranting..)

The Restoration - Begun

It's like a part of my culture to turn someone else room into a storage room if the owner is not around for a long time. I went to china and stayed for ten years and when I return home my room don't look like a room at all. At first I did not really care cause I am not going to move in anyway, I have rented an apartment and I like it there better.

BUT

when business was bad and I am forced to close and give up the business, I am also forced to go back home. To claim my old room at my fathers house.  That was the time I realize how bad really it is. So I choose to take the basement room for a while but I cant wait any longer so I decided to do the restoration my self.

the wall are all like this

and I don't really know which color is better, I have tried light colors and they are easily to get dirty plus the only available color at my dads construction supply is chocolate brown and black. Initially I really want to paint it black and put some white paintings but my dad said its still his house and he don't want any room to be painted black.

 I started 10 am and I finish at around 1 pm, don't have a roller but I think it was all good...

i will try to paint some details (lol like a canvas eh) soon..

A picture of my wall in china.. black wall.. let me know what you think...

(oh by the way the owner of the apartment was really so angry when he know I painted it black - the paint I used in here is not the ordinary wall paint, the paint actually can be washed with water, the flowers too is water base canvas paints)

I was taking a pic from my webcam

not a good quality but I guess it look just fine.. hopefully

The Teacher is Back

Few weeks ago I decided to take some time off from work because I feel like I was so burn out and as they say in economics I don't see any return of investment. I had another offer from another company a better pay but it will for sure turn my world up side down. It's a whole new thing and I don't know if I can take a risk. Don't get me wrong I love to gamble sometimes but this time the stake is too much that I am not sure if I will take it or not.

Solution: one month off from work. I wanted to really think as hard as I can on what I should do, so I took one month off and now that that month is over I finally know what I want. 

In the end I still want to be a teacher, one of the most underpaid job on earth, but I think I was looking about the return of investment in the wrong way. It may not see it financially, but I am happy, I am happy when my students send me postcards, when they send me emails and tell me how far they can go. One student made an impact on my decision to stay on my profession. His name is Hediki Ota, he was really a nice guy and he study hard, now at the age of 24 he already tour the world and he wrote a book about his tour. He open a business and now he is one of the youngest Company President in Japan, he is a living proof that a dream is enough to motivate a person. Unlike other young President he did not inherit his position, he work for it.

I know not everyone in my class will be like Hediki but some of them will be as successful as he is, and that is my return of investment, being a part of the lives of future doctors, lawyers and leaders.

so!!

Motels are not just for couples

there are moments in your life where in you feel like so burn out and you need to be alone for a few hours just to be yourself cause home is not a suitable place for that. A month ago I was caught between two choices that I don't even know what to do. I don't know which one to choose.

On my way to and from work I always pass this motel called Hollywood, and one day just before I quit my current job I really wanted to be alone for few hours to think what should I do. I only have a week to think on my next move and I am running out of time. I decided to ask the taxi to drop me at the motel, he look at me on a weird way but I did not really care.

inside of the room

Compared to most motel rooms I have been I kinda like this better, though it's a bit more expensive than the others. I actually ordered a bottle of bear and I was drinking at the veranda when I got the first knock on my door, it was a bell boy asking me if I am expecting a guest and I said no just me.

then here comes another knock after another 15 minutes asking me the same question. I was still polite this time. I thought that was all but when I ordered another bear the lady on the other end of the line again ask me the same question, I said no and I asked what is wrong with you people that you need to asked me if I am expecting a guest to many times, I asked if the other people did not relay the information to her since she is the front desk and she said she know but she just want to make sure.

outside the veranda 

which makes me think that this motel could be good but good lord the workers are too nosy.  I know that in Filipino culture motorist hotel became a short time F*** place and that's the soul purpose of it. So i know that it's a bit weird that a person can just go to a motel alone without anyone with him/her. I don't plan to stay long so I choose to pull over a motel first they are cheaper and second they allow short term stay unlike hotels... the nosy workers piss me off though.

Blue Sling Bag To Celebrate Fourth of July

Happy independence day... 

I don't understand why every fourth of July most people would talk about war and what not. is it not supposed to be celebration of the independence that our American brothers and sisters are enjoying. 

Some people would hate those who are in the war zone, not realizing that those who are there don't want to be there, they sacrifice a lot because they believe in something. Let's not hate them for believing , weather we agree with it or not, lets just respect them for putting their life on the line to keep us safe here at home. After all who doesn't want to be safe...

BUT

I'm not going to talk about war and the like since I'm not an expert and I don't want to pretend to be one :) I want to celebrate the fourth of July my own way :)

so here it goes!
 Tadahhh!
Blue Sling Bag to a lucky winner :)

This bag is made out of handwoven cloth.
 It's a good bag to pair mostly with dress and it's good for summer :)

(please excuse the wire)

The handle where you can adjust the bag

sorry cant find a better angle

the name of the city where I am right now

and oopppsss!
I want to be honest about the bag! the bag is not good for school since it cant carry a lot of school material like books. sometimes sharp object like pen, pencil and triangular rulers can create a whole in it. Other than that its all good :)

It's easy to join but you have to be:

1) celebrating fourth of July
2) Have a street address (No PO Box please)
3) Willing to wait (inside the PH it will take 7 days outside the PH it will take 20 days)


All you have to do is answer this question in the comment box:
What do you usually do to celebrate 4th of July?
leave your email address I will contact you if you got picked. (your name will be written on a piece of paper and DK will pick the winner)

cut off time is July 5th NN (that would be July 4th MN in the US)
the winner will be selected and will be emailed not later than July 6.
***The bag is ready to be shipped***

Declaimer : This is a No Sponsor give away.

A Small Town Girl

I feel like talking about the town I was born in to my post today. So here we go :) I was born and raised in a small town called Sagada in the Northern Region of Luzon. I belong to the tribe of the Igorots. We are called the Head Hunters of Northern Luzon. 

Back in the days just like the Native Americans they scalp the head of their kill for us we take the head.  That is the reason why they call us the Head Hunters. A mark that somehow people think we still practice. 

When I was young I cant wait to get out from this sleepy town. I wanted so bad to finish high school so I could go to the university. I wanted so much to have the city life.

BUT

When I finally had the so called city life, Even moved to China I realize that the small town where I was born is actually better than the big cities. I can't seem to cope up with the fast life. These days I pray so hard that may God gave me a chance to retire in that old sleepy town where everybody pretty much know everyone.

somethings I took for granted :(

Inside the Sumguing cave.. somehow it use to be a playground for us

That far village straight at the far end is exactly where some of my friends were born and raised and we need to walk this fields just to go to high school. 4 years and I cant just imagine how I did it :)

A view that can tranquilize you 

the hanging coffins in the high rocks of the Rocky Valley

Let's Talk About Rings the Korean Way

I rarely wear jewelry and somehow I am not really that interested in them but this thing about the ring fascinates me.

I never heard about a so called couple ring until I meet my Korean students.

I thought couple ring is the wedding ring but it turned out to be completely different thing.

Here's the story: If a man and a woman became exclusively dating at least for a month, the man is expected and therefor oblige to buy a couple ring. YES! one for her and one for him and they tend to be pricey. (the evil in me is thinking, if only I am pretty then I would go on a BF collection to collect a ring I could sell, after all I only need a month to get that ring.. Kidding)

actually I wonder what happen to that couple ring after they became engage. They sure will change it to an engagement ring of course. Well I head that the girl will put the couple ring in another finger and will put the engagement ring to replace it. But the catch is that there is no specific finger the couple can put the couple ring, it's their own choice. Well it still can be seen as fashion and not something that symbolize something.

oh well here comes the ring that I know of. Wedding ring, symbol of being taken and not up for grabs. according to my students the couple will now replace the rings that they previously wore with this final ring.

I was thinking! wow you cant be a playboy in Korea unless you are rich (not that I agree with guys being playboys) Just imagine buying pricey ring every month just in case you want to change GF every month. Sigh!

Some koreans words I would like to share:

Older sister

*If you are a boy - Nuna

*If you are a girl - Unni

Older Brother

*If you are a boy - hyung

*If you are a girl - Oppah (but then again if your BF is older than you, you can call him Oppah)

Younger sis/bro

*Male/female can call them dongseng.

and here's my favorite

Hello

*face to face - anyong (if its older - anyong haseyo)

*Over the phone - Yoboseyo (seyo is polite way, mostly used to older people) But be careful cause without the seyo and just yobo it would mean a totally different thing, it would mean "Honey" and not just honey, it's only used by couples who are legally married. If you are not married then you can use "jagi or jagiya" which is so sad cause jagiya is the name of my dog. :(  T.T

A Glimpse of What I do

On my last day at work I plan to take pictures with all my students. BUT it just so happen that the camera did not work well so I have to be satisfied with what is okey hehe :) These are pics of me and few of my favorite students... hmmm did I say that right hehe! well teachers are not suppose to have their own favorite but well I would be lying if I say I don't have some.

Minju and T. Shirly

They look like they are best friends but they

just meet that day hehe :)

The super polite Seayong 

I have to make the picture black in white cause

he glow like milk hehe.. means he got a fair skin that

would pass cleopatra's standard :)

T. Shirly and me

T. Edwin

T. bebz, me and T. Ghana

T. Ghana, T. Jezabelle, T. Shirly and T. Bebz

David (forgot the korean name)

Me and Morphios (dont know korean name - He is special cause he is

one of the smartest students I've ever had)

Me and Seayong

Me and T. Bebz

Me and Seayong

Me, T. Bebz (two I forgot the name), Minju, Jungha, Seayong and T.Shirly

Minju and Jungha (I gave them a couple ring hehehe) it's actually an elastic hair thing 

Well you pretty much know everybody now hehe :)

T. Shirly and T. Bebz are the nicest people I could find in the company. :) Just like me Coffee addict... but then again that is our medicine haha :)

PS: will be talking about the couple ring maybe in my next post. I think only Korean do it, I mean maybe some people are doing it too but Only Korean have it as a part of their culture. I would talk about dating as well :) hehe

My Top Five Movies

I don't really want to spend a dime in movie theaters. I am more of that so called ninja viewer, I patronize the free download thing over the net. But there are some occasions that the movie seems too good to let is pass. So here are my top five favorite movies that I actually spend some bucks for the ticket.

1) Avatar : The first and last (hope not) movie I watched in 3D. It's the second week of showing and all tickets are sold so I forced my best friend to drive me to HK so I can watch this movie. It was worth it though

2) Memoires of a Gesha : I was forced (or believe to be) to watch this movie because of my literature class teacher. She can talk about it all day and still has a lot of things to say. The movie was a bit funny not because of the plot but because of the actors. It was a Japanese theme but the main actors are Chinese.
hmmp!

3) James Bond : Forgive me for having a father who is so in love with the best fictional spy the Brits could ever make. I can say that my dad influence me with this movie but that is actually a lie. Even without my dad's influence I will still James Bond

4) Montana Sky : I'm not really into drama but this one is an exception. It's a story of 3 sisters with different characters. They need to get along well within a given time or they will loose the ranch a symbol of their fathers life. One more reason why I like this is because it's something country. yehaaa

5) Titanic : Not really something I would pay to watch in the big screen. The movie reviews that I saw are just so great that I want to see if it is as good as they say. Aside from the fact that it is based on a real story, for me it is just another love story.

Sure there are better movies worth paying for but these are just my top five movies I really paid for just to see it on big screen.

What is your list?

Torn Between Two Lovers

I only have a few days to decide, 4 days to be exact. Should I stay in PIA (current job as a teacher) 

Cant fine a better picture
Photo Credit to Google
PIA (school) is inside this building
practically this is the school

or Move to convergys (call center agent)

Both company are really good. PIA being the best English academy in Baguio city and Convergys being the best call center in the Philippines. 

PIA gives me opportunity to do what I do best, provides me an avenue to make a deference to other people. Gives me satisfaction and makes me want to learn more about things around me, specially human behavior. BUT I don't see myself being somewhere in the next five years, so is with my bank account. Sure we often say that we should work to make us happy and not for the money, but that's a huge bullshit, I would be a super hypocrite if I would say I want to work t0 be happy. The reason why I am working is for my family to have food on our table and I want to have the best food in there.

Convergys can provide me with opportunity to try something new, an adventure and an opportunity to dream higher. It can provide me a way to make my life better BUT there are a lot of IF's and Maybe's.

I don't really know! Will I regret moving away from my comfort zone? Will I regret it that I did not try something to make my life better? and a lot more than that... The main question though is... 

Next week! Is is PIA or Convergys? Sigh!

My Unlucky Number

This sure could be isolated case but I was really so disappointed with globes costumer service. I don't really use their network but since someone recommended that they give a cheaper data plan I switch to their network.

I bought a globe sim card two days ago activated it but since I don't really use it and I don't have the money to register with the 30 day unlimited plan I waited till i got my pay.

I bought a card worth of 500 pesos from a globe outlet near the office. I tried to load it but it says the card is invalid. I tried so many times but I still get the same thing. Good thing I have a receipt so I went back to the store and I was lucky enough that they were willing to help.

They called globe and asked if the card is still okay and they say it is still okay and the number has not been uses. (that's nice at least I wont be accused of using the card and giving it back) After a very long time they finally figured out that there is something wrong with my number and I need to change it. (it wont accept load) So I asked if can they change it, with globes own expense of course cause I don't think it's my fault that I choose that number from their store. To my dismay the customer rep told me that globe will not shoulder anything and they are sorry for the inconvenience but that's the only thing they can do.

I was really so angry but my co-worker told me that even if you get so mad they will just asked you to go to any globe store and if you are just pre-paid user they wont give a shit about your problem. Now globe wont help and the store wont do refund which I understand because the problem is not the card but the number.

My friend suggested to load the card on her phone and she will share the load to me, so well we did and wolah it work, I was so happy with that but when I tried to resister to the sakto promos it prompt subscriber barren. What the F***... Oh! well here we go again calling globe customer service and I don't really want to make the story long but it all end up like I just lost 500 php and lost a lot of energy arguing with the costumer rep and I don't even know if she know what is she talking about. Sigh!

Do I have a plan in using their network? Nope I better stick with smart for now unless they fix their service.

Can it get any weirder than this?

Somehow blogging is my outlet to most of my frustration in life, at work or just frustration in general. The person blogging is me and not the persona that I have to wear every time I go to work. I always hear people say be yourself, I don't know but somehow by saying that we are not ourselves, because it is human nature to desire to look good.

I want people to read my blog but at some point I don't want my friends to read about what I am writing. I always think that if some people that I know would read my blog and if I keep thinking about that, it would mean that I have to restrict myself to some issues but then again that would take away the whole sense of this blog.

Why am I writing this? Just because last Friday while I was away from my classroom one of my student went  to class early and since my laptop is on the table and blogger is up he was actually reading my blog. There is nothing to hide there because I don't think I have touch some of the sensitive issue yet. It gave me an uneasy feeling none the less. 

I told the student to mind his own business but I was the one telling the world and even asking the world to know about what I think with things. I cry privacy and yet I want people to know what's inside my head. UGH! are we humans really complicated as this?

Somehow I am one of those who can't really be myself at all times, there are certain expectations from me that requires a mask, this is really sad but somehow a reality that most can't accept.

Sigh!

How Did I Start

I'm sure that most bloggers did not start writing with keyboard, that includes me. I started to develop the love of writing when I was in grade 6. Our teacher asked us to write a diary for our writing class. I can still remember my entry, they are all about every routine. I continued to write until I was in 2nd year in high school, somehow cute boys worth my time more than my diary.

I pick the diary and pen again when I was in the university, this time things are all about the guy next to me, how the teacher always match and coordinate everything based on colors (including her nail polish). It was fun until I can't do it anymore, I don't have much time specially my last year.

Then here I am again, I guess once a writer always a writer. This time I'm sure I have the time to maintain it, no more getting bored and no more school to get on my way of blogging. :) 

Well I did not start writing with keyboard like the others but I am here now and I will be for a long time :)

Lunch at Work

I am one of those people who prefers to bring their lunch at work rather than eating at the cafeteria. It's cheaper for me, though I do admit that what they cook down there taste's good.

But yesterday has a different story (I guess). I woke up late so I was not able to cook something I could bring for lunch, so even if I have limited budget I just have to go and buy something at the food center. I don't usually go there so the first station that I saw was the first one I checked.

I appreciate the initiative of the company to allow food establishment to rent at the ground floor of the building, at least employee's don't have to go outside plus they also allow us to eat in our own classrooms. I can't wait for the day that they will open a centralize dining area for us, cause it's a bit lonely to eat alone. I also wish that someday there will be a room where people can gather together in their free time to just hangout with each other. Somehow I get so bored being on my own so I usually room hop to other teachers room if it's my free time. These days though since there is blogger and the office have wifi I usually just stay in my room and blog hop :)

anyway going back to the food I ordered. :) It's red Bowl, basically they serve takeout's and well I ordered this one

basically it looks like some shit but it actually taste good. I don't know how they made it cause they are already in a styro when I bought it, I can see and taste cabbage and sprouted mango and God knows what else is there but it taste good. I would order it again if I have the chance. I still prefer the food that I cook for lunch though. :)

to end it I so love my workplace because of this chance to an easy food access.

Where are the Natives

I was walking home from work when I decided to drop by Abanao Square to buy a mechanical pencil at National Bookstore. I don't usually listen to other peoples conversation but this time it's special.

I overheard some local tourist talking about the natives. I heard one ask a fellow shopper where to find the natives? I wonder what kind of native she is talking about but since they are in the city of pines I assume she was talking about the Igorots. The lady said if you are talking about the Igorot you are looking at one of them. That puts a smile in my face, but then the girl who asked  gave a reaction I don't know if I'm going to slap her in the face or pity her for her ignorance, I choose the later though.

The girl said.. WEHHHH HINDI NGA! Bakit maputi ka, dibah pangit sila? (Really, then why do you have a fair skin, isn't it that they are ugly) Unconsciously I tried to find a thing where I can see my reflection.

This is what we wear before
Photo credit to: Filipinasoul.com

I do understand those people who are still not aware of the so called modern world, stuck with what they know, I admire them though for being bold.

This is what we wear now....

(I would like to thank my sis for letting me use her pictures)

 We were not stuck with what we use to do, we also follow the flow of things around us but it doesn't mean we forgot who we are. We are still Igorot the warrior of the north. We still practice the old ways but we accept the new.

I am proud of my roots I am proud to be an Igorot :)

A Memory of China

I just found this pics on my old USB  I thought I lost everything but then I guess sometimes checking your old stuff for no reason is a good thing

The top is really nice I just don't know where it is now, it looks like I'm wearing another piece of shirt of some sorts inside but not really, it's a part of the top.  I like it!

I like lines boots we just bought it the day before for 100 rmb (700 php)

I like the shoes I'm wearing I still have it. Bought it for 4$

somehow I like the outfit I wore that day... yehaaa